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​Hearst Design Group Introduces Design Connect Directory

Hearst Design Group magazines have collaborated to establish a one-stop database of the top designers in the industry, providing its readers access to the nation’s preeminent designers.

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For many aspiring home-decorators across the
country, Hearst’s shelter magazines are reliable sources for not only
inspiration, but also for discovering superior designers to hire. In order to
consolidate and enhance access to the best design talent for its readers, the
Hearst Design Group, made up of House
Beautiful, ELLE DECOR and VERANDA, has introduced the Design Connect Directory. The new portal, accessible from all three magazine sites, presents
consumers with a one-stop database of the top designers in the industry.

ELLE DECOR, which joined the Hearst Magazines
family in 2011, has long maintained a designer directory that’s been very
successful with readers. ELLE DECOR’s original program supported the design
community and brought inspirational pictures to ELLEDECOR.com, in addition to
boosting ELLE DECOR’s site traffic—making advertisers happy—and creating a new
revenue stream. Inspired by the effectiveness of this program, the Hearst
Design Group collaborated to establish a new system to provide its readers
access to the nation’s preeminent designers.

“Through ELLE DECOR’s original design
directory, Publisher Barbara Friedmann found that advertisers appreciated being
in proximity to the database—she was the one who really drove the Hearst Design
Group to develop our new system,” says House Beautiful Editor in Chief and Hearst Design Group Editorial Director Newell Turner. “Combined, all three Hearst
Design Group brands have so much history working with the country’s best
designers, which makes the directory a natural extension to offer our readers.”

In collaboration with online design
marketplace Dering Hall, the Hearst Design Group has curated a collection of
exceptional interior designers and landscape architects, showcasing their portfolios
and contact information in a beautiful and easy-to-use format. The Directory is
also a great resource for members of the design community to house their
portfolios and reach a broader base of consumers. Currently, the Directory
features more than 450 design professionals—and growing—who apply to be
included and are reviewed by Dering Hall in conjunction with editors.

The Directory also features landscape architects, including Conte & Conte.

“The Hearst Design Group believes strongly in
the importance of the designer and the influence they have on bringing a
client’s vision to life,” Turner says. “Our Design Connect Directory is a
wonderful resource for readers and first time site visitors to find the perfect partners to help them with their spaces.”

The Directory has also tapped in to House Beautiful’s “Next Wave” designers.
The magazine’s popular column features an up-and-coming designer each month,
and recently hosted a lunch to celebrate all of the featured designers from the
past three years. At the lunch, Dering Hall offered all of the designers a complimentary
one-year membership to the Directory, which will bring fresh talent offerings
to users.

The Directory publishes a Designer of
the Week feature, complete with a special showcase of the designer’s portfolio
and highlighted contact information for potential customers. In addition to
being prominently featured on the site, the Designer of the Week is
occasionally promoted by Design Connect and Dering Hall in editorial features
and email blasts to its customers.

Hearst Design Group magazines are spreading
the word about the new Directory in-book with featured print ads and
promotions. House Beautiful, ELLE
DECOR and VERANDA are also promoting the database on their social media
platforms.

“Working with a designer can be one of the
most amazing experiences,” Turner says. “We want to help our readers become as
knowledgeable as possible about what they like and what they are looking for in
a designer so they can create the best possible spaces in their homes.”

Designers interested in becoming members of
the Directory can apply through Dering
Hall.

In collaboration with online design marketplace Dering Hall, the Hearst Design Group has curated a collection of exceptional interior designers and landscape architects.